It's late, no SL games yesterday, and there's not a lot of Mavs stuff out there. So when I cant sleep, you can count on me to either vent or ramble. This morning, its probably ramble. My first victim? Jason Kidd
Sometimes, in wake of what went on with Avery and him being the leader of this squad for so many years, Josh Howard rumors, Dirk's role on this team, Bass etc.... I forget Jason is even on our team. But is this really something to get excited about?
Well for the past few weeks, with the Olympics coming up, there have been specials on NBA TV about him, tons of stuff on ESPN about the team and Jason's role on it, and of course now that training camp has started, a lot more on the internet about the leadership role he is taking with a team that is heavily talented... and I must say, I've gotten pretty excited about watching him play in a system where he (supposedly) is going to be the floor general and leader of this team.
Let's take a look at the past few years. When Kobe and Lebron have played with Kidd in summers past, rumors came out that they both wanted their respected teams to make a Kidd trade happen. While Kobe was pretty felling pretty good at around the time Dallas acquired Kidd because the Lakers had recently acquired Gasol, Lebron was reportedly pretty upset that the Cavs did not get a deal done with NJ.
Why? What possibly could the likes of Lebron and Kobe see in then 34 year-old Kidd, that they didnt in an up and coming Williams and Paul? What would drive them to point of requesting that their teams should deal for Kidd, so that they could have a chance to win a championship? What possibly could Coach K see in Kidd NOW, that he would cause him to play Kidd over two younger point guards, who in our eyes have seemed so obviously better than Kidd in almost every head to head match-up we saw against them this past year? What is it about Kidd that all these people are seeing, that those who already dismiss the Kidd trade and who dont really grasp how badly Avery was holding him back... cant?
Kidd asked back into the U.S. national program in the fall of 2006 following the Americans' third-place finish at the World Championship in Japan, where the play of the point guards -- Kirk Hinrich and Chris Paul -- was one of the team's biggest weaknesses. Both had trouble defending the pick-and-roll, and Paul's greatest strength -- his quickness -- was negated by the opponents' ability to keep a defender in the lane as a second line of defense, something NBA teams are not allowed to do without drawing a defensive three-second violation.
Kidd offered an option that Team USA saw in many of its opponents but didn't itself possess -- a steady floor general with experience playing the international game....
Floor general and experience... in the international game, NBA, playoffs, Finals... you name it. So could it be that these two things mean more than one's skill level? Well, to some degree I am starting to believe so. The way some of his fellow Olympic team mates, and even Maverick teams mates and coaches have talked about playing or coaching with him.... how can you NOT be excited to see the Kidd show and not the Avery show?
Maybe I'm drinking the kool-aid too early and too soon on this, but its always about this time of year (and time of night) through training camp that we ALL start drinking it about something Mavs-related.
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Other news related to Kidd, and in wake of Childress going to Greece, Jason says that after his final $20 million dollar year is up with the Mavs, he wouldn't mind heading out there also...
As models for the perfect pioneer go, Jason Kidd does believe that his talents at 35 years old are suited to the Euro game, where size, strength and smarts are a tonic for declining speed and explosiveness.
Yes, Kidd is relentlessly committed to chasing an NBA title with Dirk Nowitzki and the Dallas Mavericks. Still, nothing is forever for him at 35. When delivered a premise about the possibility of someday following the Atlanta Hawks’ Josh Childress to Europe, Kidd confessed that no longer is it possible to consider your future in a context limited to the NBA.
“In the next four or five years, could I end up playing over there?” Kidd wondered. “Hey, why wouldn’t I play in Italy or somewhere (else)? That might be a great experience.
“It’s a legitimate option now with Childress going over there.”
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No SL action yesterday. However we do play today at 5:30 CST against NJ and it will be on NBA TV (not sure what time though) and it will be streamed live. Here is the streaming schedule for tomorrow and Friday's games. Remember Mo Shots? He will be playing for NJ tomorrow.
Also here is some quick stats and info on JaJuan Smith:
JaJuan Smith still has a shot to make the Dallas Mavericks, while another former UT player Scooter McFadgon is playing for the NBA Developmental team of "Ambassadors" in the Rocky Mountain Revue League.
Smith got off to a strong start with the Mavericks in Las Vegas, averaging more points per minute than any other Dallas player in the NBA Summer League.
Smith averaged 7.6 points in 10.6 minutes and shot 13-of-27 from the field (.481) and 7-of-15 (.467) from beyond the 3-point line with five assists and one turnover.
Smith started slow in the Salt Lake City league, but a strong performance Monday night (5-of-13 shooting, 4-of-9 on 3-pointers and 14 points) has him back in the running for a job.
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In some random news around the league...
Jazz traded fairly used Jason Hart to the Clippers for 30 year old Brevin Knight.
Deng has not got a deal done with the Bulls yet, and he's not happy about it.
Reports yesterday suggested that Chicago Bulls' forward Luol Deng and his agent were ready to issue an "ultimatum" to the Bulls, basically saying if Luol did not have a deal done by September 1st, that he would back away from negotiations and not negotiate again with the Bulls...
In Luol's case, $57 million is not enough for a number of reasons. First, other teams are offering sign-and-trade packages that Chicago seems lukewarm on exploring. Those sign-and-trade packages could get Luol in the $13 to $14 million a year range, which is substantially more than Chicago's offer - roughly $9 million per year. Some teams are telling the agents of the restricted class to take the qualifying offer this year and get radically paid next year as unrestricted free agents; this includes Ben Gordon and Luol Deng. League sources suggested that the Lakers, Pistons, Heat and Jazz have all had discussions with Luol Deng's camp about the framework of a sign-and-trade.
For 13-14 million a year, ehhhh, yeah it's over-paying for him. But better to over pay for a young guy now, when he is in his prime and will be at his best, than to over pay for an older player (see Posey, JET).
I would do this deal, again if Howard is not involved in any way, shape or form, and we unload Stack and Jones. But do the Bulls want expiring contracts, or are they past the rebuilding?
Yahoo reports it a little different though, saying the Bulls have Aug 4 to make a decision...
Deng is determined to come to terms on a long-term contract, but he has set an Aug. 4 deadline to reach an agreement. Once Deng, 23, leaves the country for the European Championship qualifying tournament, he will sign a one-year qualifying offer for $4.5 million and become an unrestricted free agent in 2009....
...If the Bulls believe Deng is serious about leaving next year, they may have no choice but to broker a sign-and-trade with one of the numerous suitors around the league. The Utah Jazz and Miami Heat are expected to be two of the most aggressive pursuers.
Ahemmmm... Mavericks? Hello? You at least gotta look at this... especially if all Miami is offering is Marion in return, why not at least be in discussion with not only expiring contracts, but a promising player in Bass as well.